Members of one of the city's largest taxi driver's union are saying they'll strike if the Taxi and Limousine Commission doesn't raise fares and if the TLC installs GPS into the cabs. The union says the fare hike is necessary because of rising gas prices (they'd like a surcharge if gas prices are above $2). Newsday notes that neither Mayor Bloomberg or Fernando Ferrer have weighed in on the matter, and perhaps that's because TLC Commissioner Matthew Daus hasn't yet decided whether or not to "support or reject" the surcharge. Daus did say the TLC would "move forward" with installing GPS into cabs, which some union members feel will violate their civil liberties; the TLC wants to use GPS to direct cab drivers to areas where there are lots of customers waiting for cabs (Gothamist thought that's what the CB radios were for!). When Gothamist ask a cab driver if the last round of surcharges were helpful, he was dismissive. He did, however, warn us that we should never cross the street immediately when the light turns red for traffic, because many cabs have terrible brakes and we might get hit.
Anyway, if the cab drivers strike, Gothamist bets the AirTrain will be more heavily used. The TLC has at least officially approved the hybrid vehicles to be used for taxi "hack-ups." Many of the initiatives the TLC is interested in implementing were originally announced in May, such as more credit card payments and tracking of lost possessions; see the TLC's procurement RFP.
